Until 12th January 2025, Jason and the Adventure of 254 at the Wellcome Collection, London, transports visitors to Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield on 1st August 1980, at 2:54 pm, where eleven-year-old Jason Wilsher-Mills lies in a hospital bed, paralysed from the neck down due to an autoimmune condition. Meanwhile, in Moscow, British athlete Sebastian Coe (b. 1956), wearing the number 254, secured victory in the 1,500-meter men’s race at the Olympics, which Wilsher-Mills watched on the hospital ward’s TV. Jason Wilsher-Mills explores his childhood recollections of his experiences during this pivotal period.
Originally from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, UK, Jason Wilsher-Mills is an artist who examines narratives of disability, health, and identity, employing playful humour and vibrant magic realism. He seeks to create new storytelling methods that align with the social model of disability, emphasising that society disables individuals by not accommodating everyone’s needs.
The exhibition’s main focus is a figure watching television from a hospital bed. The TV has transformed into Sebastian Coe, identified by his racing number 254, which happens to be the exact moment (2:45 pm) he won the race and when Jason’s parents received their devastating news. The body reflects Jason’s feelings, with his feet swollen to represent extreme pain and fairground lights depicting awry neurological signals. Toy soldiers surrounding Jason and Sebastian are wielding viruses, symbolising the metaphor used by the doctor to explain Jason’s autoimmune condition as an army of white blood cells attacking instead of defending.
Calliper boots, a motif often seen in Wilsher-Mills’ work, were a significant part of his childhood. Originally designed to support his weight and train his ankles, he found them cumbersome. He has since reimagined them as a symbol of pride and identity, resembling Dr Martens and featuring the Union Jack flag and other patterns to represent Britain and his inner feelings.
The exhibition is like a time capsule of the popular culture that influenced Wilsher-Mills during childhood. He took inspiration from TV shows like Batman and Doctor Who and his favourite comic, The Beano. Using these influences, he has created various alter egos, such as Frankenfoot and MRI-boy, whose images cover the walls along with a timeline of events. Key dates include contracting chicken pox in April 1980, being told by a doctor he was merely suffering growing pains in June 1980, and being diagnosed with polyneuropathy in August 1980.
The installation features dioramas that represent moments from the artist’s past. These miniature scenes are housed in machines that light up at the press of a button. They symbolise the artist’s journey from childhood to becoming an artist and offer a glimpse into his experiences. Family is a central theme in these dioramas. One of the artworks, Mum as a Mermaid, shows Wilsher-Mills’ mother as a mermaid dancing with a North Sea cod. Other scenes depict comedic moments from Wilsher-Mills’ teenage years spent in a paralysed state. The Pee and the Fruit recounts the story of Jason’s brother-in-law eating an apple from his bedside, not realising it had been covered in urine, much to Jason’s later amusement. Uncle Dennis and the Inseminouds represents his uncle’s visits to the hospital, where he would share details of the VHS films he had been watching, regardless of whether they were suitable for Jason’s age. The alien figure in the artwork symbolises Jason’s body fighting against his illness.
Other works by Wilsher-Mills explore the idea of living parallel lives. In Trinity, he references his talent as a rugby league player as a child and the physical ability he lost. In Painting With My Mouth, he acknowledges the importance of his hospital education, which led him to become an artist. In this piece, Jason depicts himself as a Dalek from Doctor Who painting on an easel, surrounded by small versions of his other artworks.
“It was at [the hospital] school that I was taught to paint with my mouth. This was such a huge, momentous thing, as my energies now went into creating new worlds. I wasn’t limited to just living in my head; I could externalise my imagination in a very real way. I filled up many sketchbooks and started to create characters. It was the start of my journey as an artist.” – Jason Wilsher-Mills
Chronic polyneuropathy and chronic fatigue syndrome left Wilsher-Mills paralysed from the neck down for five years. Additionally, he has suffered tendon damage, making drawing difficult. He sees his art as similar to the Beano comic strip. His exhibitions are usually funny and political, focusing on positivity rather than anger. He often incorporates interactive elements and inflatable sculptures into his work. More recently, he has used an iPad as a tool, inspired by painter David Hockney (b. 1937).
At the age of twelve, Wilsher-Mills was refused entry to a cinema due to being deemed a “fire hazard” because of his wheelchair. This experience fueled his desire to fight against discrimination. In 2015, he created two banners for the Houses of Parliament, one commemorating the Disability Discrimination Act.
“An emotional and whimsical expression of the joys of being human, fun for the whole family, and has something powerful to say about how society perceives disability.” – Metro
Inspired by 1980s TV and anatomical drawings, the colourful exhibition Jason and the Adventure of 254 celebrates family and creativity with a hint of magical realism and humour. The installation encourages visitors to interact with the push-button lights and touch the artwork gently. The exhibition will be at the Wellcome Collection until January 2025 and is free to visit.
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Until October 2023, the Wallace Collection in London is putting on a treat for art lovers and dog lovers alike. Their current exhibition, Portraits of Dogs: From Gainsborough to Hockney, explores humanity’s devotion to dogs across the centuries. Over 50 paintings demonstrate the unique bond between humans and dogs, the majority by British artists. Britain, more so than other countries, developed a love of dog paintings during the 17th century and continues to appreciate the genre today.
Although the majority of artworks in the exhibition date from the 18th century onwards, the oldest exhibit is The Townley Greyhounds, dating back to the 1st or 2nd century CE. On loan from the British Museum, the marble statue depicts two affectionate greyhound-like dogs. Recent examination of the sculpture suggests they are salukis rather than greyhounds. One dog nibbles the ear of the other and places one paw on its back as though caressing a loved one.
The statue is named after Charles Townley (1737-1810), an antiquarian who acquired it from Gavin Hamilton (1723-98) in 1774. Hamilton discovered two sculptures of dogs at Monte Cagnolo outside Rome. The Pope claimed one of the finds, and Townley purchased the other for £50 (almost £10,000 today). The Townley Greyhounds demonstrates that people adored dogs in the ancient world. For the sculptor to produce such a detailed depiction, he needed to study the animals closely and at length.
Another person that studied dogs closely was Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). The Renaissance polymath frequently observed the natural world to help improve his understanding of universal laws. Using his artistic abilities, Da Vinci regularly made sketches of his observations, including the anatomy of a dog’s paw, which he drew between 1490 and 1495. The paw probably belonged to a deerhound and was sketched from several angles.
Da Vinci usually annotated his illustrations, but his sketches of a dog’s paw lacks written notes. Whilst the drawings are rough, Da Vinci’s skill is evident through his choice of media. The artist used metalpoint, which is a technique that required considerable control because it was difficult or even impossible to correct or erase lines drawn with the metal stylus on specially prepared paper. Da Vinci did not have access to modern drawing materials, such as pencils, which did not appear until the 18th century.
Apart from strays, dogs were once associated with European elites and had important roles within the household or even at court – usually as a companion. Despite their importance, they did not often appear in artworks until the 16th century. Aristocrats commissioned paintings to demonstrate their wealth and virtue, which dogs began to symbolise.
In Britain, aristocrats developed strong bonds with their pets, and they became part of the family rather than a means of demonstrating wealth. In the 18th century, dog portraiture became popular, almost equaling family and individual portraits amongst the elite. Paintings of dogs became prized possessions, and animal artists, such as George Stubbs (1724-1806), were much sought after.
Stubbs, like Da Vinci, paid close attention to the anatomy of a dog but also accentuated the animal’s and breed’s characteristics. Stubbs managed to give a sense of the dog’s strength and intelligence despite only painting a side-view portrait of the animal. Stubbs’s painting of a lemon and white water spaniel belonging to Charles Anderson-Pelham, 1st Baron Yarborough (1749-1823), seems focused and ready to run, perhaps suggesting it was a very lively creature that could not stay still for long.
Following in Stubbs’ footsteps, Edwin Landseer (1802-73) became the most sought animal painter of the 19th century. He also produced sculptures, such as the lions at the foot of Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, London. Although Landseer created dog portraits for prestigious clients, he found success by depicting dogs in narrative scenes, frequently satirising human life.
One of Landseer’s most successful works was Laying Down the Law, also known as Trial by Jury (1840), which satirises the legal profession. A French poodle sits centre stage, representing the judge, its white, fluffy hair not too dissimilar from a court wig. Other dogs of various breeds represent other members of the court, such as the court clerk and the jury.
Landseer exhibited Trial by Jury at the Royal Academy, where it caught the attention of William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire (1790-1858). Cavendish chose to purchase the painting on the condition that Landseer added his spaniel into the scene. The brown and white spaniel, Bony, sits on the right-hand side of the judge. The poodle has been said to represent either Lord Brougham or Lord Lyndhurst, both of whom served as Lord Chancellor between the 1820s and 40s.
Another allegorical painting by Landseer is Doubtful Crumbs, which alludes to a passage from the 16th chapter of the Gospel of Luke.
There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. – Luke 16:19-21
Also known as Looking for the Crumbs that Fall from the Rich Man’s Table, the painting depicts a mastiff dozing after enjoying a bone while a hungry terrier salivates. The mastiff represents the rich man in the Gospel reading, whilst the terrier symbolises Lazarus and would be content with some of the scraps the mastiff has left uneaten. Victorian Britain valued morals and would have regarded Landseer’s painting as a denunciation of social inequality.
Landseer displayed Doubtful Crumbs at the Royal Academy, where it was purchased by the art patron Elhanan Bicknell (1788-1861). After Bicknell’s death, the painting went up for auction and was purchased by Richard Seymour-Conway, 4th Marquess of Hertford (1800-70). Seymour-Conway hung the artwork in his home at Hertford House in Manchester Square, London, known today as the Wallace Collection.
Not all of Landseer’s paintings are comical. The Old Shepherd’s Chief Mourner demonstrates a dog’s love for its owner, who has recently passed away. The collie rests his head on the top of the coffin, mournfully contemplating life without his master.
Many Victorians were obsessed with death and the unknown, which Landseer attempted to convey in his heartwrenching painting. Although Landseer meant the dog to demonstrate human emotions, it has since been proved that dogs also feel deep emotions and are devoted to their owners. When viewing the painting, art critic John Ruskin remarked on its “utter hopelessness”, which had a powerful effect on several art collectors. After the artwork went on display at the Royal Academy in 1837, engravings of the scene were published and sold widely the following year.
Landseer’s reputation for animal portraits gained him some prestigious commissions, most notably from Queen Victoria (1819-1901) and her husband, Prince Albert (1819-61). In 1838, Landseer produced a portrait of three of the Queen’s dogs, Hector, Nero and Dash, posing with a parrot called Lory. On seeing the completed painting, Victoria said it was “the most beautiful thing imaginable”.
Hector, the large grey Spanish deerhound, and Nero, the black greyhound, stand to the right of the painting, while Dash, the spaniel, lies on an upholstered stool. Lory, the parrot, stands in the foreground, cracking nuts. Nero belonged to Victoria’s mother, but Hector had been given to Victoria as a puppy in 1835. Dash remained the Queen’s favourite, hence his position on the stool.
Landseer had already painted Dash and Lory before 1838. In the same year, he also produced a portrait of Tilco, Queen Victoria’s Sussex spaniel. In total, Landseer produced over 40 works for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, many of them featuring their beloved pets.
Not only did Victoria and Albert adore their pets, but they also loved art and drawing. As children, they received drawing lessons, and as adults, they continued to receive tuition under Sir George Hayter (1792-1871). Under Hayter’s guidance, Prince Albert produced his first etching in August 1840 and continued to practice and perfect his technique over the coming months. In October 1840, Albert printed an etching of the head of Queen Victoria’s Dachshund, Waldmann.
Throughout history, artists have included dogs in paintings, whether in genre paintings, landscapes or portraits. Some artists used their pets as subjects, such as William Hogarth (1697-1764), who had many pugs, and Thomas Gainsborough (1727-88). As a countryman, Gainsborough loved dogs, and produced a couple of portraits for their owners. He also painted two of his own dogs, which remained in his family home. Unfortunately, this meant the portrait did not receive a title, and it was only through reading letters and diaries that art historians gave it the name Tristram and Fox.
Gainsborough’s dogs were of two different breeds, but it is difficult to determine which. Fox, who sits on the left, appears to be a type of collie, whilst Tristram, on the right, looks similar to a spaniel. Others suggest that Tristram is a setter, and his height is deceptive because he is lying down. Whatever the breed, it is clear Gainsborough adored his dogs to produce such a realistic and detailed portrait.
Proving that the British continue to love and adore dogs today, contemporary artist David Hockney (b.1937) produced an entire series of paintings dedicated to his two dachshunds, Stanley and Boodgie. Dog Days (1995) comprises 45 artworks of the dogs in various poses. The series took three months to complete, and Hockney set up dozens of easels around his house to quickly capture Stanley and Boodgie’s movements.
Stanley and Boodgie played an important role in Hockney’s life. During the 1980s, Hockney lost many close friends, prompting Hockney to adopt the dogs as a new focus in life while he battled with grief. By the time Hockney produced Dog Days, he considered Stanley and Boodgie his best friends. While the painted dogs are recognisable as dachshunds by their shape, the vivid colours are typical of Hockney’s style. Whilst other artists demonstrated their adoration of animals through detailed portraits, Hockney revealed his love through the number of paintings he produced.
Someone who became known for her love of dogs over the last 70 years was Britain’s longest-serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022). To coincide with the Portraits of Dogs exhibition and honour the late Queen’s life, the Wallace Collection is hosting a free display of The Queen and her Corgis. Throughout her reign, the Queen owned over 30 Pembroke Welsh corgis, many of whom descended from Susan, who the Queen received for her 18th birthday.
The Queen’s love of corgis began when she and her sister were given a pair called Jane and Dookie in 1933. They instantly became the princesses’ faithful companions, remaining a constant presence throughout their childhood. As Queen, Elizabeth was often photographed with a corgi by her side, as seen in the handful on display at the Wallace Collection.
The Wallace Collection proves that, for many people, dogs are certainly “man’s best friend”. From satirical paintings to commissioned portraits, Portraits of Dogs demonstrates the ways artists show their love for these furry creatures. The artworks are predominately realist and typical of the 18th and 19th centuries, with a couple of contemporary artists thrown in at the end. The Queen and her Corgis exhibits the same love through photographs while remembering a much-loved Queen.
Portraits of Dogs: From Gainsborough to Hockneyis open until 15th October 2023. Tickets cost £14, although some concessions are available. Tickets are available to book on the Wallace Collection webiste.
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I deliberately set out to prove I could do four entirely different sorts of picture like Picasso.
Until 29th May 2017, Tate Britain are exhibiting the life works of David Hockney (b1937), one of the most widely acknowledged artists of the present day. Displaying work from his early days as a student at the Royal College of Art right up until his newest works, the exhibition showcases the different styles and techniques Hockney experimented with during different periods of his life. Arranged in chronological order, the artwork tells the story of its creator as well as delving into the mind of a true artist.
Whilst studying in the 1960s, Hockney was subjected to the influences of a whole range of styles and artists. Although it is usually easy to identify a Hockney painting, his work as a student was vastly different. Inspired by abstraction, Hockney produced child-like canvases filled with splashes of paint, graffiti styled letters and numbers, phallic shapes and freehand drawings. Most of these artworks were related to themes of sex, love and homosexuality, which is suggestive of issues he may have been facing at this time.
Shortly after finishing college, Hockney moved on to new topics and new styles. Although his subject matter remained broad, he began focusing on more domesticated scenes. These, naturally, contained people, and are probably some of his more famous work. Later he got people to sit for him, however at the end of the 60s, Hockney was more focused on the people he observed around him. Often featured were naked figures, continuing his theme of sex and love.
For a large part of his life, Hockney has lived in the United States, relocating to Los Angeles as his career began to take off. Exposed to new scenery, climate and architecture, he began to use these as the focus points of his paintings. California is a state with one of the warmer climates, therefore items such as lawn sprinklers and swimming pools were fairly common. Whilst Hockney was beginning to take a naturalistic approach to art, he implemented a simple form of abstract style to capture the sense of water in motion. Therefore, his artworks were unique, not conforming to any particular movement.
Hockney soon moved on to portraits, although not commercially. Only painting people he was already acquainted with, Hockney carefully staged the compositions, combining informal poses and comfortable settings with the traditional portrait style. Hockney has become well-known for his portrait style – in fact, the Royal Academy exhibited a series of these in 2016. What makes these paintings most impressive is the choice of media and his resolution to paint everything from life. Choosing acrylic paint was a bold move; as artists will know, this paint drys quickly and cannot be removed from the canvas, therefore mistakes could not easily be rectified.
The 20th century saw the biggest changes in technology and, unlike artists from bygone eras, Hockney was able to attempt new ways of making art as each advancement appeared. In the 1980s, for instance, Hockney utilised the growing interest in photography, particularly in the form of the Polaroid camera, to create abstract works of art. Instead of photographing a scene in the traditional way, Hockney photographed each section individually, using the carefully positioned print outs to reveal the whole image – sort of like a jigsaw. This meant that the final outcome often had a double-vision effect as a result of overlapping sections where the model or scenery may have shifted, or the imprecise placement of the camera.
As the world entered the 21st century, even more options were presented to Hockney to manipulate into works of art. His most recent works have fully encompassed digital inventions, making him one of the most versatile artists of the time. Firstly, he embraced the world of film, using multiple cameras to create a cubist-like sequence showing the changing seasons of a particular scene in Yorkshire. The Four Seasons is on display toward the end of the exhibition, although examples can be found online.
Hockney has not left his drawing and painting behind however, but with the discovery of the iPhone and iPad, he has almost dismissed conventional sketchbooks, preferring to use digital apps to draw using his thumb or a stylus. Again, a few examples of these can be seen in the final room of the Tate’s exhibition.
To this very day, David Hockney continues to engage with his accustomed range of subjects, including portraits and still life. They may have taken on a more digital nature, however that does not stop them from being works of art. Despite his increasing age, it looks like the world can expect more Hockney masterpieces in the near future.
This year David Hockney returned to the Royal Academy of Arts with a selection of his latest works, 82 Portraits and 1 Still-Life (July-October 2016). Throughout his life Hockney has painted a variety of subject matter, however the almost octogenarian is continuously lured back to the genre that has played a major role in his lengthy career: portraiture.
Although born in West Yorkshire, Hockney has spent a vast amount of time in Los Angeles from where he accumulated numerous friends and acquaintances. Critics on viewing the recent exhibition will have noticed that the sitters Hockney has painted, although named, are unknown to the general public. Hockney has painted the many friends of Los Angeles, their friends and their families, thus giving an insight into the types of people Hockney chooses to be associated with. As Hockney does not take commissions, instead inviting individuals to sit for him, he has not painted any celebrities.
Some may feel disappointed at not being able to recognise any of people in the portraits hanging in the gallery, however this gives everyone the opportunity to admire the artwork and painting technique without being distracted by who is being depicted. Whilst Hockney’s portraits are realistic they do not resemble photographs, thus highlighting different personalities, emotions and attitudes surrounding each individual. There is a uniformity in colour (vibrant blue and green acrylic backgrounds) and use of brushstrokes that makes it obvious that each portrait belongs to one body of work.
Studying the paintings closely the brushstrokes may look rushed or imprecise, however Hockney spent two to three days working on each individual canvas. His is a style that is impossible to replicate by anyone else, as only he can create such an immersive effect. Hockney’s work is not merely a painting of the subject in front of him, it is an intense psychological study of both the model and the artist.
Those already familiar with David Hockney will instantly recognise the style of painting – mostly due to the garish colours – and for those who don’t, these 82 portraits (and one still-life) are a great introduction to the renowned artist.
– If you are wondering about the “1 Still-Life” aspect of the exhibition, here is the story behind it: “The still-life was painted when one sitter was unable to keep the appointment; primed to paint, Hockney turned to what was available in the studio – a selection of fruit and vegetables.”
Hazel Stainer 